Minnesota governor signs law allowing Sunday liquor sales

Reuters Staff

2 Min Read

March 8 (Reuters) - Minnesota residents will be able to purchase alcohol on Sundays from liquor stores for the first time in the state’s history this summer after the governor signed a bill to legalize the sales.

Governor Mark Dayton on Tuesday signed into law a bill allowing for the sale of alcohol from stores on Sundays between the hours of 11 a.m. and 6 p.m. beginning on July 2. Minnesota’s ban on Sunday liquor store sales has stood since it gained statehood in 1858, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

“This new law reflects the desires of most people in Minnesota, who have made it clear to their legislators that they want to have this additional option,” Dayton said in a statement on Tuesday.

Cities in the state continue to have the authority to enforce their own Sunday sales bans by drafting local regulations.

A 2015 poll by Public Policy Polling, cited by Dayton in his Tuesday statement, found that around two-thirds of state residents supported ending the Sunday ban on alcohol sales. (Reporting by Timothy Mclaughlin in Chicago; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)